Private Island Vacation (Shared Fanfic)

Yang laughed.  "That could be my next project," she joked.  "Build a hot tub in my backyard.  And I can provide the heat."  Making jokes helped her feel more comfortable as she walked further into the water.  This wasn't too bad.  Actually going under water was the only thing that got her really scared, and she didn't want to attempt that today.  This, she could deal with.  By the time the water was up to her waist, the cold didn't bother her so much.  "You ever get any exotic sea critters around here?" she asked.  "The closest I've come to it is some animals at an aquarium."  She couldn't see any crabs near her feet, and there was nothing resembling a shark or dolphin fin farther away from the shore.  Still, she figured it would be cool.  She'd been to the aquarium a few times as a kid, but seeing animals like turtles or sting rays behind a pane of glass from seeing them in person.  

"Maybe I"ll add it to my list of 'Things to Do Once I Figure Shit Out,'" Yang.  Getting over her jumpiness around water was only one small thing she needed to take care of.  There was still that fear of fighting she had.  It made her a little sad, that she couldn't get her mind well enough to go back to it.  She missed it.  But at the same time, all she could remember was how badly her last fight had been.  Thrax had seen every blow coming, and retaliated twice as hard.  And getting her mad enough so she'd make a mistake had almost been too easy.  One mention of her parents and she had been distracted enough to come recklessly charging towards him with no thought about the consequences.  Not to mention, there was still the problem of whether to get a prosthetic or not.  They were expensive, and it seemed like too much to ask from Adrien.  He'd already done so much for her.  But having another arm, even a metal one, would help a lot.  Not to mention, it'd help her actually do a decent job at the bakery.  She knew Sunshine would still find stuff for her to do while she had one arm, but it wouldn't be a whole lot.  Decorating cakes and rolling out dough required too hands.  She gave a sigh.  The stuff she needed to figure out wasn't much, but it'd take a lot of time and effort to do it.  

She was brought out of her thoughts when Adrien mentioned the fish, and how they'd swim right up to them if they wanted.  "Wow.  Really?"  She thought the fish would be a little more skittish than that.  Then again, the Agrestes were the only people to come to this island, before now at least.  It wasn't like a regular beach that was packed with tons of people every day of the summer.  She took a few steps further, trying to spot some.  Adrien suggested whale watching and that sounded interesting to her.  Being out on a boat probably wouldn't be so bad if it meant seeing big fish.  Or mammals, in this case.  "That sounds like a plan," she replied, smiling.    

That was something Yang felt like she'd been hearing a lot over the past several months.  You can't rush this.  Take as long as you need.  She just wondered how long fixing up everything else was going to take.  It had taken her a long time just to start trusting herself again and letting people in.  Who knew how long it would take to fix her fighting problem, or whether she could get a prosthetic or not?  It seemed like no matter how much progress she made, if she made any at all, there was still so much more left to do.  Her road to recovery didn't feel just long.  It seemed endless.  Regardless, Adrien seemed to notice her eagerness to see some of the ocean animals around here, and promptly showed her a hermit crab inside a conch shell.  "Oh wow," she said in amazement.  It almost looked kind of cute, and it didn't seem to be too intimidated by Yang or Adrien, considering the fact that they were so much bigger than it.

Yang was still thinking about whether she actually wanted to hold the crab or not when it decided to pinch Adrien's thumb.  Maybe it wasn't as chill with being out of the water as Yang thought.  It fell into the ocean with a tiny splash as Adrien waved his hurt thumb around.  Yang couldn't help but laugh a little.  It was a little comedic.  "Aw, you okay baby?" she teased.  She gave him an affectionate kiss on the cheek as her arm wrapped around him.  His thumb didn't look too bad, although it looked like they would have to stick with just viewing the wildlife rather than actually touching it.  That was fine with her, though.  Besides, she didn't want Adrien losing a finger trying to show her every hermit crab on the beach.  When he suggested having crab for dinner, she gave another laugh before asking "Are we getting revenge on the crab by eating his brethren?"

Yang laughed again.  "I guess that'll be another new experience for me.  I've never had crab before."  Seafood was always a bit on the expensive side unless it was deep-fried or frozen.  Yang's experience with sea food was usually fried shrimp from cheap food stands, or frozen fish sticks she could stick in the freezer.  "If it makes you feel any better though, I am having fun out here," she said.  "I think doing this will help me with the river back home."  Having a positive experience in the water might help counter the bad one she'd had.  And if she ever felt anxious or scared by the river, she could just picture being near the ocean instead.  Visualization was a technique her doctors had mentioned, although she was usually pretty bad at it.  Concentrating long enough to imagine herself someplace else was difficult for her.  But maybe it wouldn't be so had if she had this to think about.

"As long as it doesn't involve anymore hermit crabs snipping at your fingers," Yang teased.  She felt like she'd be down for most anything if Adrien was with her.  He was probably a factor in how she was handling the water so well.  Sure, they were only waist-high in, but still, it was better than nothing.  The waves were gentle, almost like little nudges.  She could understand why places like these were popular destinations for couples.  They provided just the right romantic mood that other places struggled to give.  Mountains and downtown cities didn't have an atmosphere like this.  "Well, there is one more thing I wanted to do while we were out here," she said, giving a smile before leaning in and kissing him.  Islands like these in the middle of no where had one more perk: it gave people the opportunity to do pretty much anything they wanted.  And this was something Yang wanted.  It was just her and Adrien out here, no bystanders, no reporters.  They could show as much affection as they wanted without worrying about someone looking in.  And Yang wanted to take advantage of every opportunity.  

Adrien always seemed to get caught off-guard when Yang kissed him.  But she didn't mind.  If anything, his surprise was cute.  He kissed her back, his fingers gentle against her skin.  For a moment, she had that weird sensation again of wanting to use her right hand, and then remembering it wasn't there.  But she tried not to think about that.  This was fine.  She was fine.  It didn't matter whether she had one hand or two.  She was fine the way she was, and Adrien would always love her for that.  Heat built up between them, and the cool ocean water didn't seem to do much to dampen the growing spark.  Yang felt that urge again to just be as close to Adrien as possible, to close any distance that was between them.  That closeness was something she enjoyed, and they had even less layers between them this time.